


The Great Outdoors

by Jmeelee



Series: SterekWeek 2019 [2]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Established Relationship, M/M, Marriage Proposal, Sterek Week 2019, sterekoutdoors
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-27
Updated: 2019-10-27
Packaged: 2021-01-04 15:11:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 587
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21199718
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jmeelee/pseuds/Jmeelee
Summary: Derek thumbs through the first few photos.  There’s one of him sleeping at Joshua Tree National Park, a tuft of black hair the only thing visible as he snuggles in his flannel, water-proof sleeping bag, early morning light filtering softly through their tent flap.  Another is of Derek’s broad, shirtless sun-kissed back, black triskelion tattoo dark against sea-blue ocean waves in Rio de Janeiro. One of Derek bent over a tower viewer, taking in the magnificent sights of New York City from the top of the Empire State Building, and another of a dripping, dark blue poncho-clad Derek turned away from the camera, pointing at the majestic Niagara Falls.“Stiles.” Derek shakes his head.  “I know werewolf eyes don’t photograph well, but these are pictures of the back of my head.  And they’re not even good. Your hand is in every single one. Why would you print these out?”“Narcissistic much?” Stiles jokes, rolling his eyes.  “Quit looking at yourself and pay attention to what’sinmy hand.”





	The Great Outdoors

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Sterek Week 2019 Theme: Outdoors  
The idea for this ficlet came [from this news story.](https://www.insider.com/man-snuck-engagement-ring-into-photos-with-girlfriend-before-proposal-2019-9) A huge thank you to these unsuspecting people for letting me steal their adorable story and use it to make gay fan fiction.

“What’s this?” Derek asks, eyebrows carving out real estate on his forehead. He eyes the stack of printed photos Stiles hands him with trepidation. 

Stiles’ bark of laughter scares a family of crows from the tree branches hanging overhead, and they take to the air with shrill, startled squawks. Knowing Stiles’ luck, he and Derek will probably get shit on. The thought makes him laugh even harder.

A smile starts tugging at the corners of Derek’s mouth. “What’s going on? What are these?”

Stiles breathes out a long-suffering sigh. “Just  _ take  _ them and see. Geez. Paranoid much?”

“When it comes to you? Always.” Derek reaches out and takes the pictures from Stiles’ outstretched hand. 

This moment isn’t going exactly how Stiles imagined, but truth be told, he’d never known exactly when the right moment was going to be. The only thing he knew for sure was that he wanted it to be  _ outside _ , somewhere in nature, the places that brought Derek the most peace. Stiles has seen more of the great outdoors than he ever thought possible since he started dating Derek.

Derek thumbs through the first few photos. There’s one of him sleeping at Joshua Tree National Park, a tuft of black hair the only thing visible as he snuggles in his flannel, water-proof sleeping bag, early morning light filtering softly through their tent flap. Another is of Derek’s broad, shirtless sun-kissed back, black triskelion tattoo dark against sea-blue ocean waves in Rio de Janeiro. One of Derek bent over a tower viewer, taking in the magnificent sights of New York City from the top of the Empire State Building, and another of a dripping, dark blue poncho-clad Derek turned away from the camera, pointing at the majestic Niagara Falls.

“Stiles.” Derek shakes his head. “I know werewolf eyes don’t photograph well, but these are pictures of the back of my head. And they’re not even good. Your hand is in every single one. Why would you print these out?” 

A snapshot from their weekend in Seattle. A portrait of Derek watching the sunset in Key West. One of him in profile, sticking his tongue out at a stoic Buckingham Palace guard the summer they visited Jackson and Ethan. 

“Narcissistic much?” Stiles jokes, rolling his eyes. “Quit looking at yourself and pay attention to what’s  _ in  _ my hand.”

“It’s a …” Derek’s fingers falter on the edge of a shot of himself mounting a bicycle in Boulder, Colorado. “It’s a…” 

Stiles is pretty damn proud of himself. Not only has he kept the secret for nearly a year and bribed Danny into permanently disabling his cell phone’s shutter sound, but he’s also managed to make Derek Hale speechless. He’s like a freaking ninja.

“It’s a…” Derek comes to the last picture in the pile, the only one not of him. It’s a selfie of Stiles in the preserve, standing right where they currently are, smiling bright and holding up his hand. Nestled in his palm is a small black box.

“It’s me telling you I want to go on this journey with you, if it takes us far from home or just right down the road. It’s me saying I love you. It’s a promise.” Stiles pulls the box out of his pocket, letting Derek lay eyes on it for the first time. “It’s a question.” 

Derek steps toward him, twigs barely crackling underfoot. Even in this humbly human moment, he walks with lupine grace. “It’s a  _ yes,  _ Stiles.” He smiles. “Now give me that damn ring.” 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! [I'm Jamie :-)](https://jmeelee.tumblr.com)


End file.
